Machine for dust cleaning garments



Jan. 10, 1956 G. WEISS MACHINE FOR DUST CLEANING GARMENTS 2 Sheets-Sheet1 Filed Dec. 11, 1951 INVENTOR. GEORGE M /55 f2? ATTQRNEYB Jan. 10, 19563, W355 2,729,844

MACHINE FOR DUST CLEANING GARMENTS Filed Dec. 11. 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR. Y 650665144755 8 ATTORNEYS United States Patent MACHINE FORDUST CLEANING GARMENTS George Weiss, New Hyde Park, N. Y., assignor toB. Altman & Co., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York ApplicationDecember 11, 1951, Serial No. 261,057

9 Claims. (Cl. 15-308) This invention relates to apparatus for dustcleaning fur and cloth garments prior to placing them in cold storagevaults.

It is customary before storing cloth and fur garments in cold storagefor an extended period to subject them to a cleaning operation, whichthoroughly removes all dust and possible moth larvae therefrom. This isusually accomplished by feeding to the workers movable racks n which anumber of the garments are supported by individual hangers. Each workeris provided with a closed-in individual table on which he places thegarment to be cleaned after removing it from the rack and its hanger. Hethen cleans the garment by means of compressed air directed at thegarment by a hand operated blower. During this cleaning operation, thegarment is manipulated by the worker so that each portion of thegarment, both inside and out, is subjected to the compressed air for asufiicient time to remove the dust therefrom. As this operationnaturally fills the confined air space around the table with a highconcentration of dust, the worker is obliged to wear a mask. Exhaustmeans are also usually provided to remove the dust in the vicinity ofthe table, but such means does not remove the dust which fills the airin the room occupied by the operator. Consequently, even a garment whichhas been subjected to a thorough cleaning operation will accumulate somedust from the air while it is still in the room. After the garment hasbeen cleaned, the worker replaces it on the hanger and hangs the latteron a rack for removal to the storage vault.

The primary purpose of the present invention is to provide an improvedapparatus which will remove dust and possible moth larvae from garmentsmore thoroughly and satisfactorily than prior known devices.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved apparatuswhich will eliminate the disadvantages inherent in heretofore knownmethods of dust cleaning garments and which will reduce to a minimum thehandling of the garment being cleaned.

Other objects of the invention as well as the advantages and novelfeatures of construction thereof will appear from a perusal of thefollowing description when read in connection with the accompanyingdrawings in which Fig. l is a front elevational view of a booth orcabinet constructed in accordance with the invention; Fig. 2 is avertical sectional viewof the cabinet shown in Fig. 1, the section beingtaken along the line 2-2 of Fig. 3 of the drawings; Fig. 3 is a top viewof the cabinet and Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view of the cabinet.

In the drawings, the numeral generally designates the cabinet which isprovided with a partition 11 to form an upper compartment in which thegarment is to be hung and a lower compartment 13. The partition 11 isprovided with a large centrally disposed opening 12 affordingcommunication between the two compartments and covered by a wire screenwhich permits free passages of air and dust into compartment 13, butprevents articles such as buttons and the like, from falling into suchr'ce compartment. Compartment 13 is connected by an exhaust duct 14 to asuitable source of suction. Supported on the partition 11 and overlyingthe screen 15 is a wood rack 16 for preventing overly long garmentscatching on screen 15 or blocking or cutting off the flow of air suctionthrough compartment 13, and for inducing smooth gliding of the bottom ofsuch a garment as it is being rotated in the upper compartment 11.

The cabinet 16 is provided with a door which permits access to the uppercompartment and which is composed of two sections 17 and 18 providedwith large glass panels through which the operator may observe clearlythe operation taking place in the cabinet. As shown in Figs. 1 and 4 ofthe drawings, the section 17 of the door is connected by a piano hingeto the front wall 19 of the cabinet, while section 18 is connected by apiano hinge to door section 17. Door section 18 is provided with ahandle 47 having connected thereto a pivotal bolt or latch 46 whoseouter end is receivable in a locking socket 45 to lock the door inclosed position.

The top wall 20 of the cabinet is provided with a plurality of openings21 through which is drawn air by' the exhaust duct 14, and which reducesthe intense suction created in the upper compartment of the cabinet toan extent suliicient to permit the operation of the door sections 17 and18. Mounted centrally of the top wall 20 is a bolt 23', which at itslower end supports a depending triangularly-shaped, metal swivel member22. The swivel member 22 is connected by a suitable ball bearing unit tothe bolt 23 so that it is freely rotatable about the latter as an axis.The swivel member 22 serves as a support for the hanger 25 on which ismounted the garment 24 to be cleaned.

The side walls 26 and 27 of the cabinet are provided with narrowtransversely disposed partitions 28 and 29, respectively, which form aplurality of vertical, narrow compartments along the interior sides ofthe cabinet. The two compartments formed by the partition 28 are coveredby a lattice framework 35) composed of a plurality of spaced,horizontally disposed guard bars. The two compartments formed by thepartition 29 are covered by a similar lattice framework 31. The widthsof the partitions 28 and 29 are such that the frameworks 30 and 31 arespaced from the side walls 26 and 27, respectively, a distanceapproximately four inches. As can be seen from Fig. 2 of the drawings,the lower ends of the frameworks 3t) and 31 are spaced a short distanceabove the wood rack 16 and such frameworks extend upwardly toapproximately the height at which the shoulders of the garment aresupported by a hanger 25 hung on the swivel member 22. Extendingvertically downwardly through the top wall 20 of the cabinet and intothe compartments formed by the partitions 23 and 29, are four pipes 32,33, 34 and 35; each pipe being located within one compartment, as shownin Fig. 4 of the drawings, and all four pipes terminating short of thegrating 16 at approximately the lower ends of the frameworks 3G and 31(note Fig. 2). The lower ends of pipes 32, 33, 34 and 35 are closed bysuitable caps. The upper ends of the pipes 32 and 33 are connected bypipes 41 and 48, respectively, to a pipe 49 extending along the innerside of side wall 27 (note Figs. 2 and 3). The upper ends of pipes 34and 35 are directly connected to pipe 49. Pipe 49 is connected by meansof a pipe 42 to a source of air pressure (not shown) capable ofdelivering air to pipe 42 under a pressure of approximately eightypounds. A hand operated valve 43 is included in pipe line 42, so thatthe air entering such pipe may be manually controlled and adjusted.Except for adjusting the air or shutting oil or starting the operationof the apparatus, the valve 43 remains untouched while the apparatus isnormally operating. Intermediate pipe 42 and pipe 49 is a suitablesolenoid operated valve 44 which is included in a simple, suitable Vcircuit containing a pair of contacts in the socket 45;the

arrangement being such that when the handle is in the position shown inFigs 1 of the drawings, the ,valve 44 is opentopermitthe flow ofcompressed air to pipes '49, 41 and 4 8 and pipes 32,33,34 and 35, whilewhen the handle 47 is moved in a counterclockwise direction, as viewedin Fig. 1 of the drawings, to lift the latch 46 from the socket 45,,thecircuit is opened to cause valve 44 to close, thereby shutting off thesupply of compressed air 7 from pipe '42.

Each of pipes 32, 33,34 and 35 are provided with a series of spacedopenings arranged in alignment for a portion of the lengthof such pipeand so located on such pipe as to direct the jets of compressed airemitted from such openings, in a predetermined direction within theupper compartment of the cabinet 10. Thus, it will be noted from Fig.2-of thedrawings, that pipe 32 is provided with a series of verticallyaligned openings which extend along that portion of the pipe from whichproject thearrows 36, and that such openings are so located as to directjets of air toward the coat at the angle shown in Fig. 4 of thedrawings. The arrows 37in Fig. 2 of the drawings, similarly indicate therange of the openings in pipe '33, and the arrow 37 in Fig. 4 indicatesthe angle at which the jets of air from such openings are directedtoward the coat. In a similar manner, arrows 33 and 39 in Fig. 2 of thedrawings, indicate the ranges of the open ings inpipes 34 and 35,respectively, and arrows 38 and 39 in Fig. 4 of the drawings indicatethe angles at which the air jets are directed from pipes 34 and 35,respectively. It will benoted from Fig. 2 of the drawings, that thevertical range of all the openings completely covers the entire height.of the body of the garment hung on the hanger and swivel 22, and thatthere is no vertical portion of the garment which will not be subjectedto a jet from one of the openings in pipes 32, 33, 34 and 35. itwillalso be noted from Fig. 4 of the drawings, that the jets from thepipes 32, 33, 34 and 35 are directed at the coat, so as to induce arotary flow of air in a counterclockwise fashion. Mountedon pipe 32above the range of openings indicated by arrows 37 in Fig. 2 of thedrawings, is a nozzle '40 which has a flattened, elongated openingarranged to direct a fiat stream or jet of air against the collar of thegarment.

It will be understood from the foregoing, that in the use of theapparatus, the operator opens the door of the booth tor cabinet, takes agarment 24 on a hanger 25 and inserts the hooked end of the latter intothe swivel 22. The operator then closes the door and as he turns thehandle 47 in aclockwise direction to lock the door in closed position,the latch 46 closes the circuit containing the solenoid valve 44,therebycausing the latter to open and permit the compressed air frompipe 42 to enter pipes .49, 41, 4.8, and 32 to 35. The openings in thepipes 32 to 35 and the nozzle .40 are so arranged that with the entry ofcompressed air, the garment is completely and evenly subjectedfromcollar to hem with steady jets or streams of compressed air at a highpressure so that the air will penetrate the fabric or the fur down tothe pelt. Asthe several series of air jets from the pipes are disposedat the varied angles previously mentioned, the garment Orr-the hangerwhich is held suspended by the freely rotatable sWivel'22, will be:given a rotating motion by such air jets. The coat 24 is preferablymounted in opened position on the hanger 25, with its sleeves loose. Asthe garment rotates under the influence of the high pressure air jets,it comes into contact with the lattice frameworks 30 and '31, the doorand rear wall of the cabinet and such parts :and particularly thelattice frameworks 3t) and 31induce a whipping action which loosens thedust and further tends to remove it. When the apparatus is in fulloperation, the coatunder the influence of the jets and the latticework,is violently whipped around in a rotary fashion so that the dust isbeaten loose and the garment is completely subjected to'high compressionair throughout every 7 portion thereof, both inside and out. In thismanner, the garment is subjected to an efficient and thorough dustcleaning operation. The bars forming the frameworks 3i) and 31 aresufficiently close so that the garment does not come into contact withthe pipes 32 to 35 or the partitions 28 and 29 during this whippingaction. During the removal of dust from the garment, the removed dust isconstantlybeing drawn oif througn the'bottom of the booth by means ofsuction action andcarried off through the duct 14 into a suitable dusthopper or receptacle. At eighty poundspressure of compressed air thegarment rotates approximately thirty revolutions in forty-five seconds,at which time the garment is thoroughly dust cleaned and may be removed.The booth is opened by turning the handle 47 in a counter-clockwisedirection to lift the latch 46. This breaks the circuit to thesolenoidvalve 44 causing the latter to shut off the flow of air. It is withinthe contemplation of the invention, that the apparatus for creating thesuction through the duct 14 may also be controlledby the handle 47 andlatch 46, so that it is shut off when the dooris unlatched. The garmentis then removed on its hanger 25 from the booth and hung on the rack on.which it is to be transferred to the storage vault. A new garment isthen hungin the cabinet to be cleaned.

it willbe observed from the foregoing, that in the operation oftheapparatus, the worker is not required to remove the garment from thehanger; the coat is thoroughi-y dust cleaned in arelatively short timeby a rotary whipping and heating action induced by the streams of highcompression air andthelatticc work, and without the need for anymotor;the garment is guided during this whipping action by the lattice work,thereby protecting the garment, and the room in which the cleaning takesplace is entirely freefrom dust and dirt. The operation is accomplishedin a relatively short period of time and due to the factthatthe operatorneed not give it his undivided attention, he may operate more than onebooth at the same'time.

While I have described and illustrated a preferred embodiment of myinvention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variouschanges and modifications may 'be made therein without departing fromthe spirit of the invention or the scope of'the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A dust cleaning apparatus for garments comprising a cabinet, means insaid cabinet for suspending a garment to be cleaned and being freelyrotatable to enable the suspended garment to be rotated about itsvertical axis, means for supplying air under relatively high pressure,aplurality of pipes connected to said supply means and arrangedvertically in spaced relation in said cabinet, each pipe havinga seriesof closely spaced openings to direct a plurality of air jets toward thegarment to be cleaned, and extending'through 'a diiferent vertical rangethan the series of openings in the other pipes, the total range of theseries of openings of all of the pipes being substantially continuousina vertical direction so that all portions of the garment located insuch total range are subjected to a "continuous of air jets, the seriesof openings in each pipe being directed at a difi'erent angle than thatof the series of openings in the other pipes and the angles of theopenings of ail of the pipes being arranged to induce a rotary flow ofair about the-vertical axis of a freely suspended garment within thecabinet, whereby the garment is caused to rotate with whipping action'bysuch air jets, means in said cabinet around the area occupied by asuspended garment and constructs and arranged to be struck by portionsof the garment rotated under the action of said air jets and therebyexercise a beating action on such garment portions, and suction meansfor exhausting the air and dust from the cabinet.

2. A dust cleaning apparatus such as defined in claim 1 in which aplurality of said pipes are arranged in spaced relation on one side ofsaid cabinet and a plurality of said pipes are arranged in spacedrelation on the other side of said cabinet, the series of openings ofthe pipes on one side of the cabinet being substantially continuousthroughout one vertical range and the series of openings of the pipes onthe other side of the cabinet being substantially continuous throughouta different vertical range.

3. A dust cleaning apparatus such as defined in claim 1, in which saidsupporting means includes a hanger supporting swivel and means mountedon the top wall of said cabinet for supporting said swivel for freerotational movement about a vertical axis, and a nozzle connected tosaid supply means and arranged to direct a stream of air on the collarof the garment.

4. A dust cleaning apparatus such as defined in claim 1, including anapertured partition in said cabinet forming an upper compartment for thegarment and a lower suction chamber, the top wall of said cabinet beingapertured to enable atmospheric air to flow therethrough and throughsaid upper compartment to such suction chamber, and including a door insaid upper compartment to permit the insertion and removal of garments,the said pipes being located in said upper chamber and said meansarranged to be struck by the garment being located between said pipesand the area occupied by a suspended garment and constructed andarranged relative to such pipes to prevent engagement of a rotatinggarment with said pipes without interfering with the action of air jetson the garment.

5. A dust cleaning apparatus such as defined in claim 1, including adoor for said cabinet, means for locking said door in closed position,means for controlling the flow of air from said supply means to saidpipes, and means controlled by said locking means for controlling saidflow controlling means.

6. A dust cleaning apparatus for garments comprising a cabinet, means insaid cabinet for suspending a garment to be cleaned and being freelyrotatable to enable the suspended garment to be rotated about itsvertical axis, means for supplying air under relatively high pressure, aplurality of pipes connected to said supply means and arrangedvertically in spaced relation in said cabinet, each pipe having a seriesof closely spaced openings to direct a plurality of air jets toward thegarment to be cleaned, and extending through a different vertical rangethan the series of openings in the other pipes, the total range of theseries of openings of all of the pipes being substantially continuous ina vertical direction so that all portions of the garment located in suchtotal range are subjected to a continuous series of air jets, the seriesof openings in each pipe being directed at a different angle than thatof the series of openings in the other pipes and the angles of theopenings of all of the pipes being arranged to induce a rotary flow ofair about the vertical axis of a freely suspended garment within thecabinet, means in said cabinet to whip the garment as it is rotated bythe jets from said pipes so that the dust is removed from such garmentby a simultaneous blowing and beating operation, and suction means forexhausting the dust and air from the cabinet.

7. A dust cleaning apparatus comprising a cabinet, means in said cabinetfor supporting a garment to be cleaned at its shoulders so that theremainder of the garment is freely suspended for transverse movement insaid cabinet and being freely rotatable to enable the suspended garmentto be rotated about its vertical axis by air jets, means for supplyingair under relatively high pressure, means connected to said supply meansand constructed and arranged to direct a plurality of jets of air towardthe garment to be cleaned and at varying angles so that such garment isrotated by such jets about a vertical axis, lattice framework arrangedin front of said jet directing means and through which the jets of airpenetrate without substantial interference, said lattice framework beingarranged in said cabinet to be engaged. by and to whip the garment as itis rotated by said jets so that the dust is removed from such garment bya simultaneous blowing and beating operation, and suction means forexhausting the air and dust from the cabinet.

8. A dust cleaning apparatus comprising a cabinet, means in said cabinetfor supporting a garment to be cleaned at its shoulders so that theremainder of the garment is freely suspended for transverse movement insaid cabinet and being freely rotatable to enable the suspended garmentto be rotated about its vertical axis by air jets, means for supplyingair under relatively high pressure, means connected to said supply meansand constructed and arranged to direct a plurality of jets of air towardthe garment to be cleaned and at varying angles so that such garment isrotated by such jets about a vertical axis, means in said cabinet towhip the garment as it is rotated by said jets so that the dust isremoved from such garment by a simultaneous blowing and beatingoperation, and suction means for exhausting the air and dust from thecabinet.

9. A dust cleaning apparatus comprising a cabinet, means in said cabinetfor suspending a garment to be cleaned and being freely rotatable toenable the suspended garment to be rotated about its vertical axis,means for supplying air under relatively high pressure, means connectedto said supply means and constructed and arranged to direct a pluralityof jets of air toward the suspended garment to be cleaned and at varyingangles so that such garment is rotated by such jets about a verticalaxis on said suspending means, means in said cabinet to whip the garmentas it is rotated by said jets so that the dust is removed from suchgarment by a simultaneous blowing and beating operation, said garmentwhipping means comprising two sets of a plurality of vertically spaced,horizontally disposed members of rounded cross-section arranged to beengaged by the garment in its whipping movements, and suction means forexhausting the air and dust from the cabinet.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,539,779 Selph May 26, 1925 1,583,511 Woodson May 4, 1926 1,807,634Okun June 2, 1931 2,169,427 Mosca Aug. 15, 1939

